Wall units

[Arran]

In the 1990s almost every middle class family had a wall unit in their living room. In the compartments with glass doors interesting items would be displayed – ornaments, family photos, glassware, trophies, antiques, etc. The compartments with wooden doors contained toys, video tapes, important documents, drinks bottles, and various odds and ends.

White British families always seemed to locate their wall unit against the wall opposite the TV but Indian families often incorporated their TV and video recorder into them.

I suspect that a lot of people had wall units in their living room for no particular reason other than everybody else had one. Over the past 10 or so years the number of living rooms which contain a wall unit has dramatically declined. People no longer have the desire to display various items as much as they did in the past.

[amethyst]

Re: Wall units

Dark Wood was in fashion especially mahogany

[battyrat]

Re: Wall units

There was a lot of those cheap looking DIY ones. Some of the well made quality ones looked ok. But I always found that they were always far too dark in the display cabinet parts to actually use as a display unit. It was always hard to see what you put in them unless it was big and bulky like a large vase. Adding light bulbs inside did not help either. The ones we had always seemed to end up as a clutter collector with all sorts of **** thrown on it.

[staffslad]

Re: Wall units

We still have a wall unit. It has been in its present position since around 1990, and before that a different wall unit occupied that space, so we've probably had one for 30+ years. Behind the glass doors there are various glasses, with bottles of spirits inside the part with the pull down cover. In the draws there are odds and ends, letters, some video tapes and goodness knows what else. I think my cousin gave it us. I've thought of throwing it out, but it holds so much stuff that I wouldn't know where to put it all, so the wall unit will stay for the forseeable future.

[teepee]

Re: Wall units

In the 1990s almost every middle class family had a wall unit in their living room.

I imagine middle-class families had started to acquire them by the late 60s. We were (lower) working class and had one by the early 70s - it was still there when I had to clear out my parents' house in 2001! Ours incorporated various shelves, drawers and cupboards, including one with a drop-down door where our (not very extensive) drinks collection was kept.

[zabadak]

Re: Wall units

Ours were wall-mounted on brackets

[Arran]

Re: Wall units

The best looking ones were owned by Hindu families. In the compartments with glass doors were statuettes of their deities and at least one graduation photo of a relative. A wall unit was a definite must have item for a Hindu family in the 1990s and early 2000s but have fallen out of fashion in recent years amongst younger families.

[amethyst]

Re: Wall units

A lot were cheap and nasty put it together yourself,I didnt like the dark wood made the rooms look dismal.Even fitted kitchens cupboards would have been dark wood,eg oak with wooden knobs

[staffslad]

Re: Wall units

I'm struggling to remember, but I think ours came in two sections when my cousin delivered it in her van. It was secondhand but has served us well for 25+ years.

[Richard1978]

Re: Wall units

My parents had a dark wood unit & matching book case for many years, which replaced a very 1970s shelving unit.

Dark wood was quite fashionable in the 1990s, we had some dark kitchen units fitted in 1992.

[Mulletino]

Re: Wall units

Ours was a G-Plan wall unit, from the late 70s. It looked a bit like this but was a lighter wood with more modern looking handles:



It had the same double handle drop down section which was a bar, where the drinks were stored/mixed. Next to that on ours was a sliding glass door display case. Along the bottom was our Record Player and records, then there was an extension which was a low level bit with two drawers where the TV sat and the Atari VCS was in the drawer.

I used to have a recurring dream as a kid where two daleks would come through the wall unit, one large and scary, the other smaller and friendly.

[Richard1978]

Re: Wall units

Ours was a G-Plan wall unit, from the late 70s. It looked a bit like this but was a lighter wood with more modern looking handles:



It had the same double handle drop down section which was a bar, where the drinks were stored/mixed. Next to that on ours was a sliding glass door display case. Along the bottom was our Record Player and records, then there was an extension which was a low level bit with two drawers where the TV sat and the Atari VCS was in the drawer.

I used to have a recurring dream as a kid where two daleks would come through the wall unit, one large and scary, the other smaller and friendly.

My aunt & uncle had a similar unit in darker wood from at least the late 1970s to about 10 years ago.

[zabadak]

Re: Wall units

This is what I was talking about (picture too big to display):



https://www.skandium.com/media/catal...de_1_1_1_1.jpg

[Twocky61]

Re: Wall units

Wall units are out of fashion now; you can't pay anyone to take them away; same as sideboards & large wardrobes

[George 1978]

Re: Wall units

My family's wall unit came from from Cavendish Woodhouse circa 1983 - It was brown with shelves, a slide door cupboard, and other things. It had a bulb holder that could light up the shelves behind the glass where my mother put ornaments inside it - plugging the wall unit in was an unofficial phrase in my family's household.

After my parents passed away, it remained in my previous home until 2011 when we replaced it with Ikea shelving, which was more modern and followed me to my incumbent home. One thing I have to say about wall units is that they weren't flat-packs like modern furniture happens to be.